Maureen O'Hara

So striking in appearance that Technicolor inventor Herbert Kalmus was said to have used her red-haired and green-eyed image to promote his creation, Maureen O'Hara was an Irish-born actress whose ver...
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Birdman was the toast of the 87th Oscars on Sunday (22Feb15), earning Best Picture as Eddie Redmayne and Julianne Moore also celebrated big wins at Hollywood's big night.
Birdman filmmaker Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu was named Best Director, while he also claimed Best Original Screenplay and Emmanuel Lubezki received the Best Cinematography award. Redmayne couldn't contain his excitement as he collected the Best Actor prize for his Stephen Hawking biopic The Theory of Everything, and Julianne Moore scored Best Actress for Still Alice, while fellow awards season favourites and first-time nominees J.K. Simmons (Whiplash) and Patricia Arquette (Boyhood) walked away with the best supporting acting prizes.
Wes Anderson also had reason to celebrate as The Grand Budapest Hotel, which tied with Birdman for the most nominations with nine nods apiece, scored four titles, including Best Original Score for Alexandre Desplat. Each of the nominations for Best Original Song were performed, but it was John Legend and Common's powerful rendition of Selma track "Glory" which left actors David Oyelowo and Chris Pine in tears at Los Angeles' Dolby Theatre as the audience gave the musicians a standing ovation. "Glory" went on to win the category. Meanwhile, Jennifer Hudson honoured the stars lost in the past year by singing "I Can't Let Go" as part of the In Memoriam segment, and Lady Gaga helped to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Oscar-winning movie The Sound of Music with an impressive medley of hits from the Dame Julie Andrews musical, including Edelweiss, Climb Ev'ry Mountain and the title song.
Ceremony host Neil Patrick Harris also showed off his vocals by opening the 2015 prizegiving with a comedic song and dance number with Anna Kendrick and actor/rocker Jack Black.
The full list of winners at the 2015 Oscars is:
Best Motion Picture of the Year: Birdman
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role: Eddie Redmayne, The Theory of Everything
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role: Julianne Moore, Still Alice
Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role: J.K. Simmons, Whiplash
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role: Patricia Arquette, Boyhood
Best Achievement in Directing: Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Birdman
Best Writing, Original Screenplay: Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Nicolas Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Jr. and Armando Bo, Birdman
Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay: Graham Moore, The Imitation Game
Best Foreign Language Film of the Year: Ida (Poland)
Best Animated Feature Film: Big Hero 6 Best Documentary, Feature: Citizenfour
Best Documentary, Short Subject: Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1
Best Short Film, Animated: Feast Best Short Film, Live Action: The Phone Call
Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song: "Glory" from Selma, by John Legend and Common
Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score: Alexandre Desplat, The Grand Budapest Hotel
Best Achievement in Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki, Birdman
Best Achievement in Film Editing: Tom Cross, Whiplash
Best Achievement in Costume Design: Milena Canonero, The Grand Budapest Hotel
Best Achievement in Production Design: Adam Stockhausen and Anna Pinnock, The Grand Budapest Hotel
Best Achievement in Makeup and Hairstyling: Frances Hannon and Mark Coulier, The Grand Budapest Hotel
Best Achievement in Visual Effects: Interstellar Best Achievement in Sound Editing: American Sniper
Best Achievement in Sound Mixing: Whiplash
Academy Honorary Awards: Jean-Claude Carriere Hayao Miyazaki Maureen O'Hara Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award: Harry Belafonte.

Singer/actor Harry Belafonte received an honorary Oscar at the Governors Awards in Los Angeles on Saturday (08Nov14). The Carmen Jones star was presented with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award by Susan Sarandon in recognition of his lifelong commitment to campaigning for civil rights.
During his speech, Belafonte implored the Hollywood stars at the ceremony to use their fame to make the world "see a better side of what we are as a species".
He added, "To be rewarded by my peers for my work, human rights, civil rights, peace, let me put it this way: It powerfully mutes the enemy's thunder."
He also brought actor Sidney Poitier on stage to share the moment with him, calling the movie legend "a man who gave so much of his own life to redirect the ship of racial hatred in American culture."
Irish actress Maureen O'Hara received a standing ovation as she headed to the podium in her wheelchair. The 94 year old was handed her honorary Oscar by Clint Eastwood and Liam Neeson, while Nicole Kidman paid tribute via video message.
Honours were also handed out to Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki and French screenwriter Jean-Claude Carriere.
Other guests at the Grand Ballroom at Hollywood and Highland included Keira Knightley, Benedict Cumberbatch, Eddie Redmayne, Logan Lerman, Emily Blunt and her husband John Krasinski and director Ron Howard.

Singer/actor Harry Belafonte and actress Maureen O'hara are set to be honoured at the Governors Awards later this year (14). The Carmen Jones star will receive the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, which is given to "an individual in the motion picture industry whose humanitarian efforts have brought credit to the industry," while O'Hara will be feted with an honorary Academy Award at the Grand Ballroom at Hollywood and Highland in Los Angeles on 8 November (14).
Announcing the new honours on Thursday (28Aug14), Academy president Cheryl Boone Isaacs said, "The Governors Awards allow us to reflect upon not the year in film, but the achievements of a lifetime.
"We're absolutely thrilled to honour these outstanding members of our global filmmaking community and look forward to celebrating with them in November."

Daphne Du Maurier's real life Jamaica Inn has been saved after it was snapped up in a multi-million dollar deal. The pub in Cornwall, England inspired the writer's 1936 book of the same name, and was later immortalised on the big screen by Alfred Hitchcock in his 1939 film starring Charles Laughton and Maureen O'Hara.
Jamaica Inn was put up for sale earlier this year (14) after its owners decided to retire, sparking fears the building, which was once a notorious smugglers' haunt, would be redeveloped.
It has now been snapped up for more than $3.2 million (£2 million) by English businessman Allen Jackson, who has vowed to preserve Jamaica Inn. He also noted the timing of the sale comes just weeks before a new TV adaptation starring Downton Abbey's Jessica Brown Findlay is due to air in the U.K.
He says, "With the BBC adaption airing around Easter, I believe it is a very timely acquisition. I am delighted to have acquired Jamaica Inn and intend to breathe new life into this fantastic and historic location."

The real life Jamaica Inn immortalised by Daphne Du Maurier and Alfred Hitchcock has been put up for sale. Du Maurier based her creepy 1936 book on the real life pub of the same name in Cornwall, England, and the tale was later brought to life by Hitchcock in his 1939 film Jamaica Inn, starring Charles Laughton and Maureen O'Hara.
The real life Jamaica Inn, which was built on moorland near the town of Bodmin in 1750, was originally used as a coaching inn and later became a notorious smugglers' haunt.
The bar is now on the market for around $3 million (£2 million) after its current owners decided to retire from the pub business.
Du Maurier stayed at the inn in 1930 and the pub now contains her original writing desk and a large number of her possessions as a tribute to the woman who made the venue famous.
Downton Abbey star Jessica Brown Findlay appears in a new BBC adaptation of the book, which is due to air in the U.K. in the spring (14).

Legendary Irish actress Maureen O'hara has filed legal papers against a lawyer in New York as part of an ongoing financial wrangle. The Quiet Man star has accused Howard Gibbs of failing to turn over his files on her personal finances and estate holdings after he was previously hired to help O'Hara's former assistant, Carolyn Murphy, sell off her property in Ireland to fund a film centre.
Now the 92 year old has filed documents at the Manhattan Supreme Court demanding he surrender the sensitive information, according to the New York Daily News.
The Maureen O'Hara Legacy Centre is currently under development in Cork. Once built, fans will be able to view the icon's memorabilia and attend filmmaking classes there.

There's something about other people's secrets... they can rob us completely of our longstanding apathy for the rest of the human race and instead thrust us into an obsessive need to know exactly what was whispered between two parties. It in Lost in Translation, in The Quiet Man, in Brick — whatever unknown words are passed from the mouths of Scarlett Johansson, Maureen O'Hara, and Nora Zehetner to the ears of Bill Murray, John Wayne, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, we just can't stop thinking about. And those are just normal people! What happens when this sort of ordeal involves the President of the United States of America?
If you watched the first round of the presidential debates, you might have caught an eyeful of Michelle Obama delivering a quiet message to her husband following his faceoff with opponent Mitt Romney. Satisfying the nosy nature of the American public, the First Lady has revealed the truth about the simple, sweet words that she spoke to President Barack Obama that night... at least, what she claims to be the truth.
"I gave him a big hug, and I said, 'Way to go,'" Michelle told Ryan Seacrest during a special interview on Tuesday morning's Today, which aired in honor of the upcoming second round of the debates, which airs tonight at 9 PM.
When asked by Seacrest if her husband ever looks to her during these debates, and in turn what sort of visible support she offers, Michelle responded, "I can never tell, but I'm always primed just in case he is." She continued "I'm perched, I'm looking at him, I'm smiling, I'm giving him a thumbs up if he can see it."
Thumbs up, eh? Smiling? Perched?! Something sounds... fishy.
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We're not completely sold by Mrs. Obama's revelation of what she did, in fact, say to her presidential husband on the night of Wednesday, October 3. "Way to go"? We're supposed to believe that the woman who masterminded (mastermound?) projects like Let's Move! and the White House Kitchen Garden, and her own book American Grown couldn't come up with anything more creative than "Way to go"? We know you've got more up your sleeve than that, Michelle.
Hence all the "signals" she seems to be flashing Barack. These so-called "thumbs ups" and "smiles" ... highly suspicious. But we're not going to stake claims toward a wild conspiracy theory involving the First Lady — that would be ridiculous, idiotic, deranged. No.
We have three conspiracy theories!
Theory #1: She's Pumping In the Answers
Perhaps Michelle is offering her husband some supplementary help with the answering of questions. Could she be wiring in the aid of experts — Cyrano style — and translating them to the POTUS via sophisticated hand motions — The Sting style?
Theory #2: She's Working for the Other Side
Or could she be a double agent, working instead for Mitt Romney? Maybe Michelle has mastered some kind of cerebrally-impeding sign language, unconsciously throwing her poor, unwitting husband off track with her psychological tricks. And that whisper at the end: a cold, threatening layer of icing on the cake.
Theory #3: They're Aliens!
Think about it, this explains everything* — the Obamas are actually ambassadors of an extragalactic species who communicate with their overlords via a series of manual and facial tics, transmitting messages through the vast cosmos to report on the status of their plan for world domination!
So, whatever theory you choose to believe, tune in to tonight's presidential debate to see the mission carried out. The truth is out there...
*Almost nothing.
[Photo Credit: NBC]
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Casting TIdbits: Looks like June from ABC’s Don’t Trust The B—- In Apartment 23 (Dreama Walker) has some competition — and no, it's not her roommate Chloe (Krysten Ritter). Angelique Cabral has nabbed the recurring role of Fox Paris, a junior analyst who works with June at her new firm. Meanwhile, Steven Culp will go to Grey's Anatomy, Maureen Sebastian heads to NBC's Revolution, Wendy Crewson will stir the pot on Revenge, and Tara Summers will work with a fictional Tara (Maggie Siff) on Sons of Anarchy. [Deadline]
Happy Endings: Looks like this year might be the actual year of Penny (Casey Wilson). The perennial singleton is about to gain a long-term (at least six episodes) beau. Nick Zano, who recently starred in 2 Broke Girls, will play Pete — the brave man willing to take on the challenge. [THR]
American Horror Story: Finally, AHS has given us something to scream about. After several 15-second bits of creepy nuns and old bathtubs, FX released a trailer that shows the new cast (including Adam Levine, Chloe Sevigny, Joseph Fiennes, and James Cromwell) and the old (Jessica Lange, Evan Peters, Zachary Quinto, Lily Rabe, and Sarah Paulson) in costume, as a creepy take on "Que Sera Sera" plays in the background. Can it be October 5 now? [TVLine]
30 Rock: 30 Rock is known for its great guest stars, but this year they're about to get bad — Breaking Bad star Bryan Cranston will appear alongside comedy great Catherine O'Hara. O'Hara will play the mysterious hillbilly Kenneth's (Jack McBrayer) mom, while Cranston will play her special "friend." [EW]
[PHOTO CREDIT: David Edwards]
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The Quiet Man star held a press conference at a hotel in Glengarriff, Ireland last week (11Jul12) to confirm she has launched legal action against longtime assistant Carolyn Murphy.
O'Hara's lawyers revealed Murphy has been stripped off her power of attorney in light of a dispute over how the actress' affairs were handled, and O'Hara is now seeking to regain the rights to her own image and name.
In a statement read out to reporters, O'Hara said, "I trusted Carolyn Murphy, not only as my personal assistant, but also as my power of attorney for the past six years. I have recently made discoveries that give me grave concern regarding Carolyn Murphy's handling of my affairs (during) those years...
"I recently revoked all aspects of the power of attorney, which I had formerly entrusted to Carolyn, and she is no longer my personal assistant. I also underwent testing to certify my own competence in conducting my affairs, and I am assisted by family members, trusted lawyers and accountants."
A spokesperson for Murphy told the Irish Times, "Carolyn Murphy has always acted in Ms O'Hara's best interest and will continue to do so. She's dealing with these unfortunate affairs in the appropriate way."
The annual Maureen O'Hara film festival, due to take place in Glengarriff later this summer (12), has now been cancelled.

In This Means War – a stylish action/rom-com hybrid from director McG – Tom Hardy (The Dark Knight Rises) and Chris Pine (Star Trek) star as CIA operatives whose close friendship is strained by the fires of romantic rivalry. Best pals FDR (Pine) and Tuck (Hardy) are equally accomplished at the spy game but their fortunes diverge dramatically in the dating realm: FDR (so nicknamed for his obvious resemblance to our 32nd president) is a smooth-talking player with an endless string of conquests while Tuck is a straight-laced introvert whose love life has stalled since his divorce. Enter Lauren (Reese Witherspoon) a pretty plucky consumer-products evaluator who piques both their interests in separate unrelated encounters. Tuck meets her via an online-dating site FDR at a video-rental store. (That Lauren is tech-savvy enough to date online but still rents movies in video stores is either a testament to her fascinating mix of contradictions or more likely an example of lazy screenwriting.)
When Tuck and FDR realize they’re pursuing the same girl it sparks their respective competitive natures and they decide to make a friendly game of it. But what begins as a good-natured rivalry swiftly devolves into romantic bloodsport with both men using the vast array of espionage tools at their disposal – from digital surveillance to poison darts – to gain an edge in the battle for Lauren’s affections. If her constitutional rights happen to be violated repeatedly in the process then so be it.
Lauren for her part remains oblivious to the clandestine machinations of her dueling suitors and happily basks in the sudden attention from two gorgeous men. Herein we find the Reese Witherspoon Dilemma: While certainly desirable Lauren is far from the irresistible Helen of Troy type that would inspire the likes of Tuck and FDR to risk their friendship their careers and potential incarceration for. At several points in This Means War I found myself wondering if there were no other peppy blondes in Los Angeles (where the film is primarily set) for these men to pursue. Then again this is a film that wishes us to believe that Tom Hardy would have trouble finding a date so perhaps plausibility is not its strong point.
When Lauren needs advice she looks to her boozy foul-mouthed best friend Trish (Chelsea Handler). Essentially an extension of Handler’s talk-show persona – an acquired taste if there ever was one – Trish’s dialogue consists almost exclusively of filthy one-liners delivered in rapid-fire succession. Handler does have some choice lines – indeed they’re practically the centerpiece of This Means War’s ad campaign – but the film derives the bulk of its humor from the outrageous lengths Tuck and FDR go to sabotage each others’ efforts a raucous game of spy-versus-spy that carries the film long after Handler’s shtick has grown stale.
Business occasionally intrudes upon matters in the guise of Heinrich (Til Schweiger) a Teutonic arms dealer bent on revenge for the death of his brother. The subplot is largely an afterthought existing primarily as a means to provide third-act fireworks – and to allow McGenius an outlet for his ADD-inspired aesthetic proclivities. The film’s action scenes are edited in such a manic quick-cut fashion that they become almost laughably incoherent. In fairness to McG he does stage a rather marvelous sequence in the middle of the film in which Tuck and FDR surreptitiously skulk about Lauren's apartment unaware of each other's presence carefully avoiding detection by Lauren who grooves absentmindedly to Montel Jordan's "This Is How We Do It." The whole scene unfolds in one continuous take – or is at least craftily constructed to appear as such – captured by one very agile steadicam operator.
Whatever his flaws as a director McG is at least smart enough to know how much a witty script and appealing leads can compensate for a film’s structural and logical deficiencies. He proved as much with Charlie’s Angels a film that enjoys a permanent spot on many a critic’s Guilty Pleasures list and does so again with This Means War. The film coasts on the chemistry of its three co-stars and only runs into trouble when the time comes to resolve its romantic competition which by the end has driven its male protagonists to engage in all manner of underhanded and duplicitous activities. This Means War being a commercial film – and likely an expensive one at that – Witherspoon's heroine is mandated to make a choice and McG all but sidesteps the whole thorny matter of Tuck and FDR’s unwavering dishonesty not to mention their craven disregard for her privacy. (They regularly eavesdrop on her activities.) For all their obvious charms the truth is that neither deserves Lauren – or anything other than a lengthy jail sentence for that matter.
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Joined the Abbey Theater in Dublin as an ingenue at age 14 before entering films (date approximate)

Last of five films for director John Ford, "The Wings of Eagles"

Played the lead in the TV-movie "Cab to Canada" (CBS)

US film debut in "The Hunchback of Notre Dame"

Starred in the CBS TV-movie "The Christmas Box"

Owned and wrote a general interest column for the tourist magazine, The Virgin Insider, which she ultimately sold to Gannett in 1980

Performed on radio as a child

Made last of five films opposite John Wayne, "Big Jake"; was also last feature for two decades

After husband's death, assumed presidency of Antilles Airboats, a commuter seaplane service in the Caribbean; sold controlling stock to Resorts International; remained with the company as president until 1981

Served as Grand Marshal of the annual St Patrick's Day parade in NYC

Under contract at RKO Studios

Began acting at age six (date approximate)

Film debut in "Kicking the Moon Around" (bit part)

Starred in the CBS movie "The Last Dance"

Under contract to 20th Century-Fox

Retired after starring in the NBC TV-movie "The Red Pony" with Henry Fonda

Met actor Charles Laughton, who changed her name to Maureen O'Hara; later appeared opposite him in "Jamaica Inn" and "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" (both 1939)

Tested for the screen in London at age 16 (date approximate)

Made first of five films opposite John Wayne, "Rio Grande"

Starred in first of five films for director John Ford, "How Green Was My Valley"

Made return to feature films after a 20-year absence in "Only the Lonely"

Summary

So striking in appearance that Technicolor inventor Herbert Kalmus was said to have used her red-haired and green-eyed image to promote his creation, Maureen O'Hara was an Irish-born actress whose versatility allowed her to move gracefully from dramas to comedies and even period adventures. She was a favorite of director John Ford, who cast her in five of his films, including "How Green Was My Valley" (1941), "Rio Grande" (1950) and "The Quiet Man" (1952). Her co-star in two Ford films was John Wayne, and their on-screen chemistry lead to several collaborations; she was also well-paired with James Stewart, with whom she appeared twice. She retired in the early 1970s and enjoyed a successful second career as a magazine publisher and later the first woman president of an airline company.

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Charles Blair

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Aviation pioneer who was first pilot to make solo flight over Arctic Ocean and North Pole; Pan Am pilot for 30 years; ran a Caribbean commuter airline Antilles Airboats; wrote autobiography Red Ball in the Sky (1969); Married March 11, 1968 until his death Sept. 2, 1978 in crash of one of his commuter planes